Voucher holder

ABSTRACT

A voucher holder holds a printed calling voucher having a unique identifier The voucher holder has two voucher holder sections foldably connected to each other along a fold line. The voucher holder is sized to fit in a wallet when the two voucher holder sections are folded together along the fold line. The voucher holder further comprises a holding device for holding the printed calling voucher adjacent to one of the two voucher holder sections and common calling information of an issuing company, the common calling information used in cooperation with the unique identifier of the printed calling voucher to place a call through the issuing company.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to a holder for a printed voucher, and in particular, to a holder for a printed calling voucher. Calling cards may be used to make long distance telephone calls. The calling cards are offered by an issuing company that provides a long distance calling service. A user, including a purchaser, purchases a calling card, calls a local access number of the issuing company, enters an unique identifier for identifying the calling card and enters the phone number they are trying to connect to. The issuing company may then approve the calling card, for example if the identified calling card has sufficient time, money, or number of calls remaining, and complete the call for the user.

Calling cards have typically been plastic cards of approximately the same shape and size of a credit or debit card. This allows the calling card to be kept conveniently in a user's wallet, purse, pocket, etc. The plastic calling cards include information common to the calling cards from an issuing company, which may include the local access number information. The plastic calling cards also include information unique to each individual calling card, which typically includes a unique identifier such as a Personal Identification Number (PIN). The PIN is often covered by a scratch-off covering, that is scratched off prior to using the plastic calling card.

The plastic calling cards are convenient for users since they may include all of the required information on the card, for example both the local access numbers of the issuing company and the PIN. The plastic calling cards also fit easily in a wallet or purse to avoid being lost, misplaced or thrown out. The plastic calling cards also provide issuing companies with the possibility of providing a branded card to the user, which provides a form of advertising to the company.

Plastic calling cards may be expensive to produce for the issuing company. Furthermore they require a store that sells them to stock a number of the various plastic calling cards in order to make available different fund denominations of calling cards. This requires the store to track the stock levels of the different denominations of calling cards.

The disadvantages of the plastic calling cards may be addressed by using printed vouchers instead of plastic calling cards. A user can purchase a calling voucher which is basically a printed receipt with the calling card unique identifier, including the PIN, printed on it. Advantageously, this reduces the cost to the issuing company since they do not need to produce the plastic calling cards. It may also be easier for stores selling the vouchers since stock of different denominations of plastic calling cards do not need to be maintained.

Although calling vouchers provide benefits over plastic calling cards, they have disadvantages associated with them. Calling vouchers may be easily lost, thrown out, or the printing of the required PIN may become unreadable due to wear. The calling vouchers do not provide an easy way of identifying information common to all calling vouchers, such as the local access numbers needed to use the calling voucher. Calling vouchers also fail to provide an issuing company with a branding or marketing opportunity.

There remains a need in the art to provide a calling card or calling voucher that provides some of the benefits of previous plastic calling cards and printed calling vouchers, while mitigating at least one of the disadvantages associated with the previous plastic calling cards or printed calling vouchers.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with one illustrative embodiment there is provided a voucher holder for holding a printed calling voucher having a unique identifier. The voucher holder comprises two voucher holder sections foldably connected to each other along a fold line, the voucher holder sized to fit in a wallet when the two voucher holder sections are folded together along the fold line. The voucher holder further comprises a holding device for holding the printed calling voucher adjacent one of the two voucher holder sections and common calling information of an issuing company, the common calling information used in cooperation with the unique identifier of the printed calling voucher to place a call through the issuing company.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Illustrative embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 depicts an outline of an embodiment of a voucher holder;

FIG. 2 a depicts a front side of a further embodiment of a voucher holder;

FIG. 2 b depicts a back side of a further embodiment of a voucher holder;

FIG. 3 depicts an outline of a further embodiment of a voucher holder; and

FIG. 4 depicts an outline of a further embodiment of a voucher holder.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Printed calling vouchers may be printed as a transaction receipt. The calling vouchers are printed on paper and include a unique identifier printed on them. The unique identifier is used when placing a call through an issuing company. The unique identifier is used to authorize and track the amount of time, money, calls, etc. remaining for the printed calling voucher.

FIG. 1 depicts an outline of an illustrative embodiment of a voucher holder 100. The voucher holder 100 has two voucher holder sections 105, 110. Each of the voucher holder sections 105, 110 may have a length A of approximately 8.55 centimeters (cm) (3.37 inches) and a height B of approximately 5.3 cm (2.1 inches). The two voucher holder sections 105, 110 are connected together along a fold line 107. The fold line 107 joining the two voucher holder sections 105, 110 may run substantially across the length A of the two voucher holder sections 105, 110. The two voucher holder sections 105, 110 may substantially overlap one another when folded together along the fold line 107.

The voucher holder 100 further includes a holding device 115. The holding device 115 may be integrally formed as part of one of the voucher holder sections 105, 110, for example as a tab as shown in FIG. 1. The tab 115 may have a length C of approximately 3.0 cm (1.2 inches), and a height D of approximately 1.6 cm (0.63 inches). The tab 115 may be formed in one of the voucher holder sections 105, 110 by a tab cut 117. The tab cut 117 may be of substantially the same dimensions as the tab 115, however as shown in FIG. 1, the tab cut 117 may form the perimeter of a section of the tab 115. The tab cut 117 may have a length E of approximately 1.5 cm (0.59 inches) and a height D of approximately 1.6 cm (0.63 inches). The tab cut 117 allows the tab 115 to be raised from the voucher holder section to allow the printed calling voucher to be inserted. The tab frictionally holds the printed voucher adjacent the voucher holder section 105, 110 that the tab 115 is formed in.

A printed calling voucher can be frictionally held by the tab 115. The two voucher holder sections 105, 110 may then be folded together to give the folded voucher holder a size and shape appropriate for placing in a wallet or purse. Preferably, the two voucher sections 105, 110 are folded together along the fold line 107 so as to place the printed calling voucher held in the holding device between the two voucher holder sections 105, 110. Folding the two voucher holder sections 105, 110 together in such a manner may help protect the printed calling voucher from excessive wear, which can cause the unique identifier to become unreadable, and so make the printed calling voucher unusable.

The voucher holder 100 may be formed from various materials, including for example, from paper. Various weights of paper may be used, for example from 75 grams per meter squared (g/m²) to 400 g/m², depending on the desired strength of the voucher holder. Alternatively the paper thickness may vary from between 14 point to 24 point. Regardless of the weight or thickness of the paper used, different finishes of paper may be used, for example the paper may be white glossy or matte card stock. Depending on the weight of paper used for the voucher holder 100, it may be formed from a single layer of paper with printing on both sides. Alternatively if a lighter weight paper is used such that additional strength is required, the voucher holder 100 may be printed on separate sheets that are glued together back to back. Alternatively the voucher holder 100 may be printed on the same side of a sheet of paper and folded and glued together to form the voucher holder 100 with the required strength. The folding of the printed sheets of paper to form the voucher holder differs from the folding of the two voucher holder sections 105, 110 together.

Referring to FIGS. 2 a, and 2 b which depict a front side and back side of the voucher holder 100, there is shown common calling information printed on the voucher holder sections 105, 110. The common information includes local access information 120, for example the local access telephone numbers of the issuing company. The local access numbers are used in cooperation with the unique identifier of the printed calling voucher held in the holding device 115 to place a call through the issuing company. The common information may also include support information, for example, instructions 122 for using the voucher holder and printed calling voucher to place a phone call using the issuing company. As shown in FIG. 2 b, the support information or instructions may indicate to dial one of the provided access numbers 120, followed by selecting from an available language, followed by entering the unique identifier found on the printed calling voucher held by the holding device 115 of the voucher holder 100, and finally entering the destination number. In addition to the access numbers 120, and the instructions 122, the common information may include branding 124 of the issuing company.

The branding information 124 may be printed on the front side of the two voucher holder sections 105, 110. The front side of the two voucher holder sections 105, 110 is the side that is visible when the two voucher holder sections 105, 110 are folded together and forms the outside of the folded voucher holder. The access numbers 120 and the instructions 122 may be printed on the back side of the two voucher holder sections 105, 110. The back side of the two voucher holder sections 105, 110 is the side that is not visible when the two voucher holder sections 105, 110 are folded together and forms the inside of the folded voucher holder. Although described as distinct pieces of information, it is understood that the local access numbers, instructions and branding information do not need to be separate from each other, and may be found on the same sides of the voucher holder sections. Furthermore additional information may be present, or some of the common information may not be present, such as the branding information 124 or the instructions 122.

The voucher holder 100 as described above when holding a printed calling voucher includes all of the information needed to place a call using the issuing company. The common information, such as local access numbers is found on the voucher holder 100 itself, while the unique identifier required by the issuing company to authorize a call is found on the printed calling voucher that is frictionally held in place on the voucher holder 100 by the holding device 115. Conveniently a user of the voucher holder 100 may follow the instructions 122 that may be found on the voucher holder 100 to place a call using the local access numbers 120 and the unique identifier of the calling voucher.

The voucher holder 100 as described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2 a, 2 b may be modified in various ways. For example, the fold line 107 along which the two voucher sections 105, 110 are connected may run substantially along the height of the two voucher sections instead of substantially along the length of the two sections. Furthermore, although the two voucher holder sections 105, 110 are described as being substantially the same size and shape, they may be different sizes and shapes. The size and shape of the two sections may cover the printed calling voucher held by the holding device when the two sections are folded together. This can help mitigate wear of the calling voucher, and may also provide a further measure of holding the calling voucher in the voucher holder, helping to prevent loss of the calling voucher. The size of the calling voucher holder sections do not need to be the same size as described above. For example, the voucher holder sections 105, 110 may be sized so as to provide the folded voucher holder with a length of between 4 cm and 9 cm, and a height of between 3 cm and 7 cm.

The holding device 115 of the voucher holder 100 does not need to be formed as an integral tab with a tab cut 117. Rather the holding device may be formed separate from the two voucher holder sections 105, 110 and glued or otherwise affixed to one of the voucher holder sections 105, 110. Additionally the holding device 115 does not need to be limited to the size and shape described for the tab 115. The holding device 115 may be larger or smaller than the tab described above. Further still, more than one holding device may be present on the voucher holder, or the holding device may comprise more than one tab. For example, the holding device may comprise two tabs, one located on each of the two voucher holder sections 105, 110. The two tabs of such a holding device 115 may be located so as to be able to frictionally hold opposite ends of the printed calling voucher, or may be used to hold multiple printed calling vouchers.

The fold line 107 described above is located substantially along a length of the two voucher holder sections. The fold may be scored or perforated for easy separation purposes if desired. The fold line could be located in various locations. For example, the fold line could be located substantially along a height of the two voucher holder sections. Further the holding device may be located and oriented in various positions. For example, a length of the holding device may be substantially parallel to the length of the voucher holder sections as shown in FIG. 1, or it may be arranged at an angle to the voucher holder sections. The holding device does not need to be located towards a side of the voucher holder section as shown in FIG. 1, for example it could be located in the middle of a voucher holder section, or it may cross the fold line and be located on both of the voucher holder sections.

Furthermore, one of the two voucher holder sections 105, 110 may be provided with a cutout aperture (not shown) that is located so as to allow the unique identifier of the printed calling voucher to be read through the folded voucher holder. The voucher holder 100 described above may also have additional sections or components added.

FIG. 3 depicts a voucher holder 100 as described above, with an additional hanging section 130 connected to one of the two voucher holder sections 105, 110. The hanging section may be connected to one of the voucher holder sections 105, 110 by a perforated tear line 132. The perforated tear line 132 allows the hanging section to be easily detached from the voucher holder 100. The hanging section includes a hanging cutout 134 of a size and shape appropriate for hanging the voucher holder, for example in a store display. The detachable hanging section 130 may be connected to both voucher holder sections 105, 110 instead of a single voucher holder section.

FIG. 4 depicts a voucher holder 100 that includes a hanging section 140. The hanging section 140 is foldably connected to one of the voucher holder sections 105, 110, along a hanging section fold line 142. The hanging section 140 includes a hanging cutout 144 that has two protrusions 146 extending into the hanging cutout 144. The hanging section 140 may be folded over the edge of the voucher holder section that it is not foldably connected to when the two voucher holder sections are folded together. The protrusions 146 may fit into corresponding slits 148 located in the other voucher holder section to releasably maintain the folding together of the two voucher holder sections. It is possible to form the hanging cutout 144 without the protrusions 146. In such a case the corresponding slits 148 may be omitted as well.

It is understood that multiple voucher holders 100 may be printed or formed on a single piece or sheet of material. Further the cutout sections and cuts do not need to be fully made at the time of printing or forming the voucher holders. For example, a cutout section may remain connected to the voucher holder by a small piece of material. The fold lines connecting the various sections of the voucher holder may be formed from scoring or pressing the material along the fold line. The fold line does not need to be scored or formed on the material, it may be sufficient to indicate the fold line if the material is easily foldable.

The voucher holders as described herein may provide advantages to an issuing company. The voucher holder may be less costly to produce than previous plastic calling cards making their use desirable to issuing companies. Furthermore, the voucher holders may provide branding or marketing opportunities to the issuing company not possible with a simple printed calling voucher.

Furthermore, the voucher holders as described herein may also provide advantages to a purchaser over a simple printed calling voucher. The voucher holder may provide an easy means for a purchaser to store the calling voucher, and may also protect the unique identifier printed thereon from becoming unreadable due to wear. The voucher holder also provides common calling information to the purchaser that is not easily printed or readable on a printed calling voucher. Advantageously, the voucher holder may be of the approximate size and shape of typical credit or debit cards so as to easily fit in wallets or purses to mitigate the loss of the printed calling vouchers.

Further still, the voucher holders as described herein may also provide advantages to a store selling calling vouchers. The same voucher holder may be used to hold different denominations of printed calling vouchers, mitigating the need to track the stock of plastic calling cards of different denominations. Due to the low cost of producing the voucher holders, they may be offered by the store selling calling vouchers for free.

Yet further still, the voucher holders as described herein may also provide advantages to the environment. The voucher holders may be made from recycled material and may in turn be recyclable. The voucher holders may also be reused to reduce the amount of garbage produced.

While various illustrative embodiments of the voucher holder have been described herein, the voucher holder is not limited to these specific embodiments. Those skilled in the art will recognize that variations and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims. 

1. A voucher holder for holding a printed calling voucher having a unique identifier, the voucher holder comprising: two voucher holder sections foldably connected to each other along a fold line, the voucher holder sized to fit in a wallet when the two voucher holder sections are folded together along the fold line; a holding device for holding the printed calling voucher adjacent one of the two voucher holder sections; and common calling information of an issuing company, the common calling information used in cooperation with the unique identifier of the printed calling voucher to place a call through the issuing company.
 2. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 1, wherein the printed calling voucher is holdable between the two voucher holder sections when the two voucher holder sections are folded together along the fold line.
 3. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 1, wherein the voucher holder is rectangular in shape when the two voucher holder sections are folded together along the fold line.
 4. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 3, wherein the rectangular shape of the voucher holder has a length of between about 4.0 and about 9.0 centimeters (about 1.6 and about 3.5 inches) and a height of between about 3.0 and about 7.0 centimeters (about 1.2 and about 2.8 inches).
 5. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 3, wherein the rectangular shape of the voucher holder has a length of approximately 8.55 centimeters (3.37 inches) and a height of approximately 5.35 centimeters (2.11 inches).
 6. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 1, wherein the common calling information of the issuing company comprises one or more local access numbers of the issuing company.
 7. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 6, wherein the common calling information of the issuing company further comprises support information.
 8. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 7, wherein the support information includes instructions for placing a phone call through the issuing company using the one or more local access numbers and the unique identifier of the printed calling voucher.
 9. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 1, wherein the holding device comprises a tab cut in one of the voucher holder sections, the tab raiseable to allow the printed voucher to be inserted and held adjacent to the voucher holder section.
 10. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 9, wherein the shape of the tab cut is unshaped, v-shaped, or rectangular shaped.
 11. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 9, wherein the tab cut has a length of approximately 1.5 centimeters (0.59 inches) and a height of approximately 1.6 centimeters (0.63 inches).
 12. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 11, wherein the length of the tab cut is substantially parallel to the length of the two voucher holder sections when folded.
 13. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 1, wherein the holding device comprises two tabs.
 14. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a second holding device.
 15. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a hanging section connected to one of the voucher holder sections, the hanging section having a hanging cutout to allow the voucher holder to be hung in a display.
 16. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 15, wherein the hanging section is connected to the one of the voucher holder sections by a perforated tear line to allow the hanging section to be detached from the one of the voucher sections.
 17. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 15, wherein the hanging section is connected to the one of the voucher holder sections by a fold line to allow the hanging section to be folded over the other of the voucher holder sections when the two voucher holder sections are folded together.
 18. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 17, wherein the hanging cutout comprises: a protrusion projecting into the hanging cutout; and the other of the voucher holder sections comprises a corresponding slit for receiving the protrusion; wherein the protrusion is for insertion in the corresponding slit when the two voucher holder sections are folded together to releasably maintain the voucher holder sections folded together.
 19. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 1, wherein the fold line is located substantially along a length of the two voucher holder sections.
 20. The voucher holder as claimed in claim 1, wherein the fold line is located substantially along a height of the two voucher holder sections. 